


Second Best

by Tadpole4176



Series: Consolation Prize [3]
Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: Gen, Kidfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-03
Updated: 2018-09-03
Packaged: 2019-07-06 12:56:07
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 17,884
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15886500
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tadpole4176/pseuds/Tadpole4176
Summary: As the original Daniel is returned, without his memory, to Vis Uban, Danny finds himself struggling with guilt over his inability to help his counterpart as effectively as his counterpart previously helped him. As a result, when a trip through their mutual ancient history in Egypt gets big Daniel stuck on the event of his parents’ death, Danny considers Machello’s body swap machine a viable means of putting things right. Fortunately, the presence of two clones blows the machine, but Danny learns a valuable lesson about his place in the universe, and gains a few insights into enjoying being a child into the process





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Note – this part includes a very brief excerpt from Fallen, which obviously isn’t mine!

“Well, I’m happy to say, sir, that he’s in perfect health, except for one, small, exception.” Dr Fraiser informed her superior, handing a carefully folded pair of glasses to Daniel, where he sat on the end of an Infirmary bed between them, carefully avoiding eye contact with either of them and half wishing that he could just go back to just being Arrom. 

“Wow, that’s different.” Finally, Daniel spoke, aware that the glasses must have been made for him. Just one more point he had to concede to these people, he reminded himself, they must have known him.

“You recognise me now?”

Reluctantly, Daniel turned to look directly at the man – Jim? No, Jack - as he intruded on his thoughts. “Has your hair always been that way?”

“What way?” Jack retorted.

“Never mind,” Daniel shrugged it off, unsure of himself and slightly embarrassed. Outside in the hallway he thought he heard some sort of noise, maybe a cough, and he found himself vaguely hoping that it was some officer come to make Jack go and tend to urgent business elsewhere, rather than staring at him.

Jack seemed unfazed however, although he might have been offended, Daniel supposed. At least he finally turned away for a moment, even if whoever he’d turned to speak to wasn’t sending him racing down the corridor.

Daniel went back to staring at the walls, ignoring the conversation around him. The walls were kind of comforting. Probably not these specific walls, just walls like that in general –they seemed to ring more bells than the ones he’d been looking at lately back on the planet. He knew walls like these, somewhere there were walls he knew really well.

“Daniel?”

Jack again, Daniel sighed at the interruption. Even ignoring him didn’t seem to make the man go away.

“I have someone I’d like you to meet.”

The Colonel glanced back through the doorway, to the person who’d been out of Daniel’s sight, and beckoned slightly. 

Obediently, Daniel watched. He’d been expecting some young officer, maybe someone who was going to trail him round the complex to make sure he didn’t get into anything he wasn’t supposed to. Failing that, maybe someone he used to work with, or Sam Carter and the big alien Teal’c, they didn’t seem like they were going to go away anytime soon.

It was none of them. Instead, in the doorway, stood a boy.

The first person on the entire planet who he’d recognised.

Himself.


	2. Chapter 2

Danny was bored.

No, he corrected himself. He wasn’t bored, he was restless. Full of nervous energy. 

Not only had Jack and the rest of SG-1 been away for days, leaving him largely stuck on base, but they’d found a descended Daniel.

And he hadn’t been allowed to go and meet him!

For the first time in living memory, Danny had completed all of his translation work. He’d categorised all of the recent archaeological finds. He’d studied hours of video tape on a lost culture that SG-7 had found. He’d even written memos, although technically they weren’t entirely his people to be writing those sort of memos to anymore, but he thought it’d probably been helpful.

He’d been shopping for Jack’s birthday present, even though his birthday wasn’t for 2 months.

And he’d driven General Hammond to distraction, to the point where he’d threatened to revoke Danny’s authorisation to enter the SGC.

Pretty much the only thing he hadn’t done was slept.

Now Danny sat in the control room, alternately gazing out of the window and spinning on his chair. Beside him, Walter seemed to have developed a nasty tick in his right eye that went off every time he looked in Danny’s direction, but otherwise everything remained stubbornly quiet.

Becoming slightly dizzy, Danny decided a change of tactic was in order. It was childish, but just at the moment he really didn’t care, Jack was always telling him to embrace his inner child anyway. Stopping his spinning by grabbing the desk, and nearly scaring Walter out of his seat in the process as he knocked a computer mouse onto the floor, Danny planted his elbows on the desk and began to stare intently at the gate.

He was pretty certain it had never worked as a kid the first time round, and Jack really would have a field day with this, but just maybe there were some ascended Danny powers left lying around somewhere in the universe now, and he could make the most of them. Barely blinking, Danny willed the gate to open.

“Danny?”

He wasn’t sure how much later it was when Janet shook him awake. It wasn’t easy to tell in the mountain, although apparently Walter had long gone, and the control room seemed to be running on a skeleton crew, so it was probably night shift. Backtracking, he tried to remember what time it had been when he’d first gone into the control room. He was pretty sure he’d had breakfast with the General, but everything after that was a bit of a blur.

“Time is it?” he grunted, knowing that Janet would have no problem with interpretation.

“Late,” said Janet, sounding slightly put out with him. “You should be in bed.”

“I’m quite capable…” Danny failed to hold her gaze as she frowned at him. OK, so he’d overdone it a bit. A lot. His miniaturised body was great for chair spinning, but all-nighters really didn’t agree with it, and he hadn’t slept well the night before. He felt horrible.

Janet raised her eyebrows at him. “Infirmary.”

No nonsense tone, Danny knew he was in trouble. He didn’t feel like arguing anyway, his tongue was too heavy. Plus he had a nasty feeling Walter must have been putting paper clips or something in his mouth as he slept, it tasted terrible.

“Urgh,” he grunted, leaping down off the chair, then having to steady himself on the monitor. 

“Danny, what are we going to do with you?” sighed Janet, clearly not expecting an answer as she grabbed him under the arms and scooped him up embarrassingly easily.

Ordinarily, barring real emergencies or messing around with Jack at home, Danny might have objected to the intrusion on his space, but again his mouth didn’t really feel up to cooperating. He decided to make a note to tell her she should ask before doing that tomorrow, then gratefully rested his head on her shoulder.

He stayed awake just long enough to hear her thank whoever had been in the control room with him.

**********

The morning began with breakfast in bed.

It was strange, Danny mused, that when you were at home breakfast in bed was very appealing, if unlikely. In the Infirmary, breakfast in bed was positively off-putting.

He supposed it might have been the manner of delivery, living with Jack he’d developed a taste for fruit loops and they were fine, but today the company didn’t seem quite so amenable.

“Danny, you need to take better care of yourself.” Janet was still using her stern voice. Danny couldn’t help but wonder when she’d had time to sleep herself, or look after other patients, if she was spending so much time being stern with him.

Then again, that was nothing really new. He’d lost count of the number of times he’d had this conversation with her or Jack as an adult. 

Of course, he was still an adult, his body had just forgotten. So actually, this was completely run of the mill, he told himself. There was probably some number on a spreadsheet somewhere that signified Daniel Jackson mothering hours and was totalled up in the medic requirements for the SGC.

“Are they back yet?” asked Danny, remembering the reason behind his vigil as he finally came round.

“No, and that will not stop me from reminding you about how to treat this body of yours, young man,” added Janet. “You’ll get to look at yourself soon enough. In the meantime, promise me you’ll eat 3 meals a day.” Her eyes held his significantly, until finally he conceded and looked away.

“Thanks, Janet.” Danny jumped out of bed before she could say anything else, thankful that she hadn’t completely undressed him as he noticed the floor was cold against his bare feet. No one seemed to believe him, but nakedness really wasn’t easier for being small – it just made him more aware of the deficit. He supposed other six year olds didn’t feel the same way, as he gratefully threw on his T-shirt and pants from the night before.

************

Walter was back. And without the tick too, Danny observed, greeting the man as he returned to his chair from the previous night.

“What time did you leave, Dr Jackson?” asked Walter, as polite as ever. He really was good at taking the bizarre in his stride. 

“I don’t know,” admitted Danny. “Janet wouldn’t tell me.”

“Ooh, that’s always a bad sign,” commiserated Walter. “That time when Siler got his hand trapped and she thought he might lose a finger, she wouldn’t tell him her prognosis for hours.”

Danny frowned, he didn’t remember that. Janet was often so forthright about these things too.

Walter grinned unexpectedly. “Sorry, Halloween stunt of ours.”

Danny shrugged, grinning back and silently praying that Jack never wanted him to go trick or treating. Somehow witches and demons held way too much meaning these days. 

“So,” he decided to change the subject. “Any word from SG-1?”

“All quiet this morning,” Walter told him, “but they’re due back 1300, so not long to wait.”

Unless they get sidetracked, added Danny, wishing there was more recent news.

He forgot Walter was pretty much psychic. “They’re not delayed nearly as often now that you’re not with… you know.”

Danny peered at him, half wishing for his glasses, because it would make the effect so much better.

“Sorry,” Walter turned back to his monitor.

Danny sighed. “I am with them,” he pointed out under his breath. “Just not this me.”

It was probably for the best that Walter didn’t respond.

************

By 1pm Danny was positively glum. He’d sat through various returning SG teams, each time leaping out of his seat just in case it was SG-1, and each time sinking back down just a little bit lower. By 12.30 his chin had been firmly rooted on the desk before him, and now only a well placed hand prevented his nose from joining it.

They were late. They’d met up with the other him, and suddenly everything was back exactly how it was supposed to be – including consistent lateness – and he was just a leftover funeral gift. All that Jack and ascended Daniel had said about him being different didn’t mean that they wouldn’t willingly replace him with the real thing. He’d been forgotten as soon as real Daniel had appeared.

1.02pm. 

OK, he admitted, bit of an extreme reaction to a couple of minutes. He wrapped his arms round his middle and continued to stare through the control room window, his legs swinging despondently from the chair.

1.05pm.

He should really leave the control room. They wouldn’t want to alarm the other Daniel with this sort of baggage on his first day.

1.14pm.

Danny slid off his chair, silently removing himself from the control room before anyone saw the tears in his eyes. He couldn’t let anyone see this. It wasn’t Daniel’s fault – they’d all been worried about him for weeks since that incident with Anubis, Danny included. He should be glad, not… this.

“Dr Jackson,” Walter called out behind him, Danny didn’t really register it was for him, no one really called him that anymore except Walter and maybe General Hammond.

“Danny.” Walter sounded worried. Wiping his eyes as surreptitiously as possible, Danny turned to look at the gate technician, only then realising that the gate was being opened. How had he missed that?

“It’s SG-1,sir,” announced Walter, both to Danny, and to General Hammond, who had apparently just been on his way to check up on things in the control room and now stood just behind Danny.

“Danny?” General Hammond touched his shoulder, gently requesting that Danny turn round.

“I’ll stay up here, sir,” whispered Danny.

“Very well, I’ll inform Colonel O’Neill of your whereabouts.”

Danny’s attention was already drawn back to the spinning ring in the gateroom, unable to help himself. He really had meant to leave, but how could he not watch? Finally, after all that waiting, the five members of SG-1 stepped through, Daniel stood alongside Jack, dressed in some sort of blue robe. 

He looked really lost. 

As General Hammond moved forward to greet Daniel, Danny found himself bathed in a wave of guilt – how could he be so self-centred? The other Daniel doesn’t even remember his name, he reminded himself. How awful would that be? Plus he’d tried so hard to make Danny feel better when he’d first discovered he was a clone. And there Danny was worrying about how it would change his relationship with Jack and the rest of SG-1. 

Daniel didn’t even know who SG-1 were.

Still, it didn’t hurt that Jack looked up to the control room and winked at him before he led the other Daniel away.


	3. Chapter 3

Breathe.

In.

Out.

In.

Danny could’ve kicked himself for being so nervous. He was meeting himself! It’s not like they were strangers. 

Nonetheless, staying in the corridor, out of sight, was like a lifeline. Maybe Jack would forget he was there? Let Daniel get through another day before he informed him he’d not only forgotten his life, but someone else had stolen it!

“Has your hair always been that way?” He heard Daniel ask.

Danny snorted, desperately trying to cover it up as he realised he would’ve been heard from inside the Infirmary. So much for Jack forgetting him.

“What way?” He heard Jack retort.

“Never mind.” Daniel sounded uncomfortable.

Danny grinned. It was funny what could stick out in the mind – even if you didn’t remember anything.

Jack’s head appeared round the door, his eyebrows raised in a manner which Danny knew meant he was supposed to go and join them. He was struck by the idea that Daniel might not recognise that expression – yet. His grin fading, Danny nodded and moved towards Jack. Slowly, as if putting it off would somehow help.

“Daniel?” Apparently the other Daniel was trying to ignore Jack too, funny.

“I have someone I’d like you to meet.”

Jack glanced back at Danny, this time beckoning slightly, probably to tell him to hurry up.

Taking a deep breath, Danny stepped into the doorway, and finally got a good look at the face that, up until recently, he’d seen every time he looked in the mirror.

He didn’t see what he’d expected. Well, no, that wasn’t precisely true. It was the same old face, that much was right. The surprised recognition was pretty much what he’d been anticipating too. But it was the eyes, they were all wrong.

He hadn’t realised before, but the one thing that had remained constant with his downsizing was his eyes. They told anyone who looked at him everything about it. They shared it all wherever he went, whether he wanted them to or not. If people looked hard enough, they still informed them in no uncertain terms that Danny was most certainly not 6. Although, Danny knew full well, his eyes didn’t really say that loud enough for most people to get the message. Daniel was like his opposite, with his eyes reflecting none of the spark Danny still recognised in his own, but his body being very much what everyone would expect.

Wasn’t that worse?

Once more Danny found himself flooded with compassion for the other self who’d so recently taken time out from his intergalactic playground in order to make Danny feel better about his lot in life. How would he feel, to have all this taken away from him? To not recognise Jack or the SGC?

Tearing his eyes from Daniel, Danny glanced down at his small hands, inspecting them carefully. Did this matter at all? At least he was still himself.

He searched for the words which might make Daniel feel more comfortable – repayment of a sort – but nothing was forthcoming. What could possibly make something like that better?

“And you’re both normally so chatty,” Jack butted in, unintentionally providing the answer.

Jack.

Jack could make anything better. 

Danny turned to look at him again, away from Daniel and the wrong eyes that were haunting him. It still wasn’t clear what he should say though. For all that he was still Daniel really, Danny found that there are certain things that aren’t easily expressed when you look like a child – even to someone who knows full well exactly what you are. Of course, Daniel himself still sitting there wasn’t helping, even if he didn’t yet share the code that Danny and Jack still did. 

“Jack,” Danny finally managed to say.

“Danny.”

He understood, he’d seen it too, Danny was sure now. Thinking about it, that was probably why he’d been so keen for Danny to see Daniel. Danny flushed with shame again, Jack had known that he’d be too busy feeling sorry for himself to think about Daniel’s plight. 

“What’s happening?” Code again, hopefully still too subtle for a memory free Daniel, Danny thought. 

“Hanging out, taking Daniel to meet some of his old friends, jog his memory a bit, that sort of thing. Was thinking that maybe you’d know about one or two memories the rest of us don’t reach.”

“He’s really me?” asked Daniel, finally. 

“Yeah,” said Danny. “I’m really you.”

“How?”

Danny took a breath, trying to think how to explain.

“Clone,” said Jack. “Sort of thing that happens round here.”

“Job hazard?” asked Daniel.

“Pretty much.”

“Interesting job.”

“Yeah,” agreed Jack. “Janet says we should let you remember on your own though.”

“Right. Why come then?” asked Daniel, not unreasonably.

“Familiar places,” shrugged Jack, glancing at Danny. “And the odd face.”

Daniel too turned back to Danny. “I do recognise him. Me.”

“Him,” said Danny firmly. “You went to great lengths to say I was different.”

“Different from what age?” asked Daniel, frowning slightly in a manner familiar to both Jack and Danny and looking Danny up and down discerningly.

“Thirty six,” said Danny. “A few months ago. I only look like I’m six.”

“Job hazard,” stated Daniel, raising his eyebrows at Danny looking for confirmation.

“Yeah.”

“And you can’t tell me anything?”

“There’s the beauty of it,” put in Jack. “I can’t tell you anything about your life here, because Janet said that was off limits, but no one ever said that Danny here couldn’t tell you about your childhood.”

“You’re hoping that’ll be enough to nudge the rest along?” asked Daniel. “It doesn’t seem like memories of childhood would be all that useful in and of themselves. More of an indulgence.”

“Actually, your childhood memories, probably not really what you’d refer to as an indulgence,” shrugged Jack, “but it seemed better than doing nothing like we were told.”

Danny grinned. Jack was really very good at loopholes. Although he had to admit, so was Janet. They’d have to hurry or she’d figure this one out too. Looking round quickly for any sign of her eavesdropping or otherwise working things out, he addressed the others. “We really need to get out of here.”

“My place,” suggested Jack.

“I was thinking more out of the Infirmary,” put in Danny.

“You should think bigger, Danny,” grinned Jack, earning himself a very adult stuck out tongue.

“How is leaving here going to help me with familiar places?” asked Daniel. “I thought being here was the whole point.” A worried crinkle appeared above his eyes that both Jack and Danny recognised. 

“It is if you usually spend a lot of time there,” Jack told him, patting him gently on the shoulder. “Much more inviting than the SGC anyway, and with beer.” He paused, “Not that you like beer.”

“I see.”

He didn’t, Danny could tell, but that didn’t matter. Jack would fix it.


	4. Chapter 4

Danny squinted at the clock. Not that he needed glasses yet, but it felt early and his one open eye wasn’t awake enough for that sort of focus.

Bit like having a hangover really, except there was no way on earth Jack would have let him drink. So…

Oh yeah. Chess. He remembered playing chess with Daniel, outside on the porch because the guy seemed slightly spooked just by being inside - not to mention distracted. Danny supposed he had been in quite a different environment for a while – shame they couldn’t all take a trip to Egypt and revisit those memories really, rather than hanging round in Colorado Springs, considering how much more comfortable Daniel might be.

So, he remembered playing chess, and getting into a stalemate, which was a first. Jack had thought that was very funny, and it’d been enough to get a smirk even on Daniel’s face. Then what? They’d been looking at the stars through Jack’s telescope, and…

Danny couldn’t remember anything else. He’d been snuggling up against Jack like he usually did when it got a bit cold up there, although this time he’d been struggling with feeling self-conscious about it with Daniel around. Then he’d started trying to out think himself over it. Whether seeing him do that would give Daniel the impression that that’s what he would’ve done too. And then presumably he’d fallen asleep mid-thought. Jack and Daniel had been talking quietly about the stars, and there’d been something soothing about just letting their voices wash over him without trying to join in.

Since he wasn’t still outside, he’d either been sleepwalking or Jack had carried him in, he concluded – less troubled by the idea than he’d expected, as though somehow the arrival of Daniel was forcing him to exacerbate their differences, rather than attempt to claw them back. Certainly it was making it easier to recognise advantages.

Either way, it was morning now and he needed to get up. Reluctant to rise, yet determined that he should make it to the kitchen before Daniel and actually do something to make the guy feel at home, Danny practically fell out of bed in his hurry. Coffee. He should make coffee. Jack might not like him to drink it, but he could make some for Daniel. That would really make him appreciate being home.

A clatter and a brief sniff of the air revealed that he’d been beaten to it – Jack always had been a natural early riser. The smell of coffee permeated the kitchen and three bowls of fruit loops lay ready and waiting at the table.

“Why don’t you go wake Daniel?” asked Jack, already sipping at his own mug of coffee and briefly making Danny quite jealous, an emotion he seemed to have in abundance just at the moment.

Got to focus on the advantages, he reminded himself, nodding to Jack, then slipping off to wake Daniel up. At least he’d got a fair idea of the best tactics, he figured, entering the room silently and removing the bed clothes. He’d never had been able to sleep cold. 

Of course, he hadn’t expected Daniel to be naked.

Odd though it seemed, Danny felt a pang of homesickness – of a sort – when he saw Daniel’s body. He remembered looking like that. Being full size. Then Daniel woke up, and it was all Danny could do not to run from the room in embarrassment for being caught staring.

“I guess you’ve seen this all before,” muttered Daniel sleepily, nonetheless reaching for a pair of pants.

“In this case it’s not just a cliché,” agreed Danny, still blushing furiously and uncontrollably.

His bottom half now clothed, Daniel sat on the edge of the bed and for a moment simply studied Danny, the way Danny had been caught studying him.

“Danny,” he began, reaching his hands out to encourage the boy to move closer. “You’ve been a great help already, don’t worry so much.”

In spite of himself, Danny found himself drawn to the warmth of Daniel’s words. He shouldn’t need this, he was a fully grown man, yet in the last 24 hours he’d experienced everything from guilt to jealousy and he could still feel himself trying too hard to please Daniel.

Just because he knew exactly how he’d feel if it was him that had no memory. Nothing to do with shame or guilt.

“How? I haven’t told you anything yet? And I can’t find the words to…” he paused. “You made me feel so much better when I first found out I was a clone. I should be able to repay you.”

“There’s no debt,” Daniel told him, taking both of Danny’s hands and looking him straight in the eye. “None of what happened to you was your choice. What happened to me, whilst not entirely under my control, was my fault – I’m sure of that. Even without remembering, I can feel it.”

Half afraid to look back into Daniel’s eyes, Danny nonetheless held his gaze – aware that the difference didn’t seem as pronounced, even after so short a time. Maybe he really had made some indefinable difference? “We both made the same choice on Kelowna,” whispered Danny, “perhaps there’s no difference at all.” He flushed again as he realised that he shouldn’t be mentioning SG-1’s missions. “Except that you go out of your way to help me, and I can’t seem to do anything for you.” He shook his head again in frustration, tears beginning to build up in his eyes as he tried to blink them back.

“You’ve shown me that I can trust Jack,” said Daniel. “Isn’t that a good start? In a world I don’t know, now there are two people I can rely on.”

Astonished, and indescribably grateful – again – Danny leaned forward to hug Daniel, aware of the involuntary flinch in the man as they first made contact. “I do want to do a better job though,” he told him. “You don’t know how much you helped me.”

************

It had been clear from the start that the only thing Danny could do for Daniel was to help him remember. Trusting Jack was great, but since that trust didn’t seem to have brought anything else back with it, Danny knew exactly where to focus. He’d considered just randomly slipping snippets of their past into conversation and seeing if it rung any bells, certainly ideal stories had been popping into his head all through the previous evening, but somehow without any visual reference at all that seemed unlikely to succeed. Instead, he figured he’d be best off digging out the photos Jack had saved when he’d died.

When they’d both died. Him and Daniel. Or possibly just when Daniel had died, Danny could never decide how he felt about that. Still, at the moment his death felt more real to him than it did to Daniel, so Danny decided it wasn’t unreasonable to at least claim a share in it, even if he only knew about it second hand.

When about thirty of his years had died maybe? Somehow, that felt more accurate to Danny than suggesting that he either had or hadn’t died.

Shaking his head, Danny headed off to fetch the loft ladder. All this thinking about him and Daniel was giving him a headache. He’d hardly done this sort of mental wandering at all when he’d first found out what Thor had done to him.

Concentrate on the mission, he told himself. Jack was always telling him not to get distracted.

Carefully, and quietly so as not to disturb Jack and Daniel, who were still getting reacquainted over coffee, Danny positioned the ladder under the loft hatch. It was heavy, for his six year old muscles anyway, and certainly unwieldy, but after a good deal of highly strategic hefting and shoving, Danny managed to get the ladder in position, and stepped onto the first rung.

He was fine climbing the ladder, right up to the point where he had to open the loft hatch and climb in. Then his handicap, as Teal’c liked to call it, really set in. Reaching up to open the loft hatch, he’d had to grab the handle and give it a really hefty tug to get it open. That, in turn, had left him with his hand stuck there as it swung open, swinging him off the ladder and leaving him suspended from the hatch with nothing useful within reach.

After a few tentative attempts at swinging the loft hatch back towards the ladder, Danny had to surrender in favour of shouting for help. 

“Danny,” began Jack, as he easily reached up and rescued the boy from the hatch door, “how long is it going to take you to learn that you need to ask for help sometimes?”

Danny glanced at Daniel. “I don’t think the thirty six year old version’s quite got it down yet.”

“Figures. So what were you after?” Jack set him down on the ground carefully.

Apparently surprising them wasn’t on the agenda.

**********

The photos weren’t great. They were grainy (sometimes literally), dusty and thirty years old, but each of them held a tiny nugget from Daniel’s past, and for that they were invaluable. As Danny described the background to yet another picture of some sandy dig site in Egypt, this time including getting lost in a series of underground caverns and just barely missing being kicked in the head by a camel – for no good reason – in his childish voice, he could feel his stresses of the last day or so relaxing. Finally, he was helping, and even enjoying himself in the process. 

“Wait a minute,” Daniel interrupted as Danny moved on to a tale about his first tutor, a strange English woman who’d seemed entirely unhappy with the climate in Egypt yet had insisted on living there.

“What?”

“Didn’t she end up in hospital with sunstroke?”

Danny looked down. “Yeah, I was only trying to help her get used to the heat…” He did a double take, only then realising the implications of what Daniel had said. “You remember?”

“It’s a start anyway,” smiled Daniel.

As Danny stood up with a whoop of pure joy, he grabbed Jack and pulled him out of his seat too, suddenly full of an energy that seemed to radiate from him. It was just one picture, just one memory, and it was an incredibly long time ago, but it made all the difference – the memories were all still in there! “He’s going to be OK,” he beamed at his friend, the guilt which had been hovering over him finally dissipating as he started to dance around the room.

Jack laughed, catching up and taking hold of Danny under his arms before hoisting him up so that they were at the same level and whispering in his ear. “So are you.”


	5. Chapter 5

The photo album lay open on the table in the living room, untouched. It hadn’t been there long enough for any dust to accumulate yet, but it probably wouldn’t be moved again before it did.

Huddled in the corner of the sofa, Danny made an isolated figure. His knees were bunched up as far as they would go towards his chest, his arms tightened closely round them. His eyes were closed, screwed up as if to prevent anything from getting to him. He was very much like a tortoise which had disappeared into its shell.

Peering from the doorway silently, Jack was aching to go and console him. Nonetheless, he waited, aware that Danny needed time to distance himself before he’d be ready to accept any type of comfort. Reassured that Danny would be unhappy, but fundamentally OK, for a few minutes, Jack returned to the spare room.

Daniel was another matter. 

At first glance, it was eerie how similar the two of them were. Just like Danny, Daniel’s knees were pulled up towards his chest, albeit less effectively, and his head was down – hiding from the world. But to Jack it felt strange, that two people who were essentially the same could react so differently. Here, whereas Danny was hiding to give himself time to sort things out, Daniel was quietly howling, oh so subtly screaming for attention.

On the surface, it seemed they were reacting to the same news, which somehow made the discrepancies all the more surprising, but then, Jack figured, they were each viewing things from a different perspective. They were upset about different things altogether, in fact, because Daniel was mourning his parents’ death for the first time.

He might as well have been reliving it.

There was no blame to be set on Danny’s shoulders, he’d done nothing wrong. As Daniel had gradually begun to recognise bits and pieces of the stories Danny related to him, they’d started to accelerate through the photo album. Faster and faster through Danny’s early years as he’d topped his 6th, 7th and finally 8th birthday with Daniel increasingly able to recall events simply by looking at the photos, without waiting for any kind of explanation.

Daniel didn’t know anything about the SGC, he couldn’t skip forward to the present time without running through his past first, but with the barest of nudges he was skipping along his past nicely.

And therein lay their problem.

Presumably, Danny hadn’t forgotten what happened to his parents. Presumably he’d had every intention of gently breaking what’d happened to them to Daniel at the right time. But by the time they’d reached the family’s move to America and all the wonders that had included, Daniel’s memory had been like a runaway train, speeding along with nothing to stop it.

Nothing but a derailment. 

Daniel hadn’t been vaguely remembering things by then, he’d practically been reliving them. At speed. In the course of a few minutes, he’d travelled to America, begun to explore New York, and suddenly found himself lost and alone in the city. Aged just eight.

Somewhere in there, his brain knew that he was a grown man. It remembered how to behave as an adult, drink coffee, interact with people on an adult level. And yet. For the moment, Jack knew he was faced with the eight year old boy who’d just witnessed the death of his parents. He’d watched them die, for crying out loud.

Ever since they’d visited the gamekeeper, and Carter had explained to him just what had happened when Daniel lost his parents, Jack had been storing away an enormous amount of horror and sympathy for his friend. He hadn’t been able to begin to imagine what something like that would be like, even if the effects on Daniel’s personality were – in retrospect – transparent. Still, he’d never expected to need to go through it for real with him. It was nearly 30 years ago!

Unlocking the deep well of sympathy he’d stored up for his friend, Jack moved towards Daniel cautiously, unsure whether he should disturb him as he stared blankly at the wall, rocking and alternately muttering or groaning under his breath. A call had already been placed to Janet – whatever the consequences – and another to Carter, getting as much detail as he could about what precisely had happened that day, although Jack wasn’t sure he really needed that information, it seemed pretty clear to him. The boy had been forgotten.

Oh sure, he hadn’t been forgotten for long, not really, but in the life of an eight year old boy who’d just seen his parents crushed to death, it must’ve been like forever. Jack placed his hand on Daniel’s shoulder, gently so as not to startle him.

“You’re not alone, Daniel,” Jack told him. “You’re not even in New York any more. None of this matters.”

There was no response, not that Jack had really expected much. At least the kid hadn’t flinched away from him. Gradually, not making any sudden moves, Jack’s left hand began to stroke Daniel’s back, slowly trying to relax him enough to snap out of it.

************

“Danny.”

A female voice penetrated Danny’s self-imposed exile, forcing him to open his eyes and face the world again.

He couldn’t believe what he’d done to Daniel.

“Danny?”

It was Janet, her smiling face peering down at him, obviously looking for signs of something wrong with him.

“Are you OK?”

Tough question, but he nodded - for the moment.

“Jack called me, but he didn’t say what had happened. Did you hurt yourself?”

Danny shook his head, increasingly aware that there was no sign of Jack when normally he’d have been there to reassure Danny right away. He knew it was because Jack needed to take care of Daniel, because Daniel had had a huge shock, but still he felt a niggling doubt creep in.

What if that was it now? If Jack would always have to put Daniel first because he was more real?

Of course, Danny was a grown man – albeit in a small body – and as such didn’t need a shoulder to cry on anyway, so it would be fine, he reminded himself.

He cleared his throat, trying to remove the choked up feeling, then finally responded properly to Janet. “He’s with Daniel. He had a shock.”

Slowly, Janet’s expression changed as, sharper than a razor, from just that simple explanation she figured out Jack’s little loophole.

“He remembered something?”

Danny swallowed. “His parents’ death,” he whispered, guilt sweeping over him again.

Janet didn’t mess about with accusations or ‘I told you so’s. “Where are they?”

Silently, Danny pointed. Really he should’ve showed her, but he wasn’t ready to face reality just yet.

Honestly, he would’ve been perfectly happy if he could’ve avoided reality indefinitely. Maybe retreated into really being six and not known the first thing about where his parents had gone.

Or just how he’d let Daniel had find out.

But sooner or later, Danny knew he was going to have to talk to Daniel about what’d happened.

Because otherwise he’d never be able to put it right.


	6. Chapter 6

Janet was all professional and efficient when she arrived, which Jack figured probably meant she was really pissed with him, but saving it up for later. At least she wasn’t likely to be holding anything against Danny, although if he’d still been in the same state when she’d arrived, it would’ve been obvious she didn’t need to. Danny was doing that all by himself.

Still, all that efficiency had its advantages. Within moments of her stepping through the door they’d managed to manoeuvre Daniel onto the bed and she’d given him a sedative. He didn’t look peaceful exactly, it was obvious he knew there was something going on even in his sleep, but he wasn’t doing that weird silent howling thing, so Jack was pretty grateful. He hadn’t had the first clue how to react to that.

“Janet?” Jack addressed the doctor quietly, interrupting as she tried to take Daniel’s pulse. 

“Colonel?”

“Will you be OK with Daniel for a minute? I need to check on Danny.”

There was a flash of anger at the situation for a moment, then she caught his eye and her expression softened. She’d probably still take revenge, but more of the cold type than a real roasting now, apparently. “You go do that, sir. Danny needs you.”

I knew that, thought Jack, wondering if she was piling on the guilt on purpose. “Thanks,” he nodded to her and moved to leave the room.

“Colonel?”

He turned back.

“I know you meant nothing by this. You have to remember, this could easily have happened anyway – and without any warning at all. Amnesia can be unpredictable.”

Jack nodded gratefully, slightly surprised. “I’ll make sure Danny knows that.”

“And you too, sir,” added Janet. 

And me too. Jack wasn’t sure he agreed there, but it was possible. He shrugged, then headed out to find Danny.

**********

Danny had moved on. Not physically. He still sat exactly where Jack had left him. But now - judging by the little frown that kept crossing his face - having got over the initial shock, he was struggling with how to repair the damage. 

He was also struggling, from what Jack saw, with a sudden resistance to accepting comfort. Figured. Danny really was good at perverse.

Not to worry. He didn’t care how old Danny was, today Jack wasn’t taking ‘no’ for an answer. Sliding down next to his boy, Jack slung his arm round him, ignoring the absence of the snuggling which had become the norm with Danny in this incarnation. Jack knew he would win, it was just a question of time.

He figured he hadn’t seen Danny sit still for more than 30 minutes at a time anyway. This was an exercise in patience and, contrary to popular belief, Jack could be very good at patience.

Jack didn’t attempt to interrupt Danny’s thoughts. There was no effort to negotiate with him, persuade him that everything was OK, or that nothing was his fault. Jack just sat there, quietly passing the time.

Watching the clock.

After 7 minutes, Danny began to fidget.

Nothing big at first, twitches more than anything, but Jack could feel that resisting the proffered comfort was becoming an effort. Danny was concentrating on it, whilst his body was trying to betray him.

12 minutes in, Danny glanced at him.

It was surreptitious, the sort of thing that he could’ve missed, if he hadn’t been special ops trained - a thought that made Jack smile, imagining telling his instructors of the latest use he’d found for their methods. Danny was definitely coming round though, that glance was all the proof Jack needed.

At 21 minutes, Danny leapt out of the seat. At least, he would have if Jack hadn’t stopped him. Instead, however, he found himself stopped mid-leap, and plonked straight back onto the sofa.

Even so, it was a full 5 minutes further before he broke the silence.

“Jack?” 

“Yeah?” Danny might have been speaking to him, be he still wouldn’t look him in the eye.

“I need to go to the bathroom.”

“Right.”

Jack didn’t move. 

“Jack?” 

Finally, Danny swivelled his head to look Jack in the eye. “You heard me, right?”

He sounded slightly annoyed, well, frustrated anyway. The sort of thing that would usually be accompanied by eye-rolling. Certainly progress on sitting there contemplating his dramatic failures though, inwardly Jack declared victory – just a little further to go, but no way Danny could resist now. “I heard you, Danny. It’s OK, I can clean the sofa.”

“Jaaaack.”

OK, now there had to be real eye-rolling, even if Danny was currently too short for Jack to tell for certain.

“I’ll tickle you to help you get it out if you like,” offered Jack, without inflection.

Finally, Danny giggled. Well, snorted anyway. “You can’t do that!” His cheeks coloured.

“If you don’t talk to me, then absolutely I can do that.” Jack meant it too, what was a little cleaning? Still, he had to admit, he was happier that Danny wasn’t really 6, and therefore wasn’t too likely to take him up on the offer. 

Danny paused, probably debating his options, then nodded. “I can talk to you if you want.”

‘If I want?’ Ouch, Jack cringed. When did that happen? “I insist,” he informed his friend.

“Bathroom first,” added Danny, this time shooting off as Jack finally released him. Not so fast that Jack couldn’t see a little spring added to his step though.

*********

Returning to Jack, Danny felt an awkwardness that he hadn’t experienced since he’d first been left there by Thor. Did he sit on Jack’s knee to talk to him? Ordinarily, he would, but although Jack had proved that he still had an interest in Danny, did he truly want to continue in the same way as before?

Danny had believed it, up until Daniel’d been in trouble.

But then, if he’d been in Jack’s position, wouldn’t he have wanted to make sure Daniel was OK too? In fact, didn’t he want to make sure himself anyway? A niggling doubt was beginning to set in as he began to look at Jack’s actions more rationally. Maybe nothing had changed at all? Maybe he was just seeing things. Jack certainly seemed the same as ever now – aside from all the worry anyway.

Jack really did seem worried. Danny took stock of his friend, calmly returning the gaze that hadn’t left him since he’d re-entered the room. He was worried about both of them.

And, not that he wanted Jack worried, but wasn’t that all that mattered? That he still cared?

Cautiously, Danny sidled between Jack’s arms and manoeuvred himself onto his lap, leaning back to finally accept the comfort that was offered.

“Sorry, Jack,” he whispered. “I wasn’t thinking.”

“That’s OK, I’m just glad you’re back.”

Jack squeezed – hard enough that Danny felt some of the breath knocked out of him. But then, hard enough that his trust was knocked back in too.

“I need to help Daniel,” Danny finally informed Jack.

“I figured,” replied Jack. “You and me both. You do know this wasn’t your fault though, right?”

Danny shrugged.

“Janet said it could easily have happened anyway, and I saw how he remembered – there was no way you could’ve stopped him.” Jack pushed Danny’s head back, forcing him to look him in the eye.

Danny wasn’t entirely sure he believed him, the whole kid thing tended to make people reluctant to place any guilt on his shoulders – Jack especially. Then again, maybe Jack had always been that way, at least provided he hadn’t touched anything he shouldn’t have. “I still started it,” he told Jack simply.

“I found the loophole,” pointed out Jack.

“I told the stories.” Danny.

“I fetched the photo album.” Jack.

“I opened the loft hatch,” Danny smiled, in spite of himself.

“I drove us here.” Jack stuck his tongue out.

“I…” Danny stopped himself. For the moment, he had more important things to worry about than their favourite competing for guilt game. “Can we go and see him? Or is Janet going to chase us out?”

“You’re afraid of Janet now?” Jack chuckled lightly, the mood lifted considerably.

“Don’t deny it, so’re you,” pointed out Danny, prodding Jack in the chest with a small finger. 

“We’ll gang up on her,” suggested Jack, lifting Danny into his arms and rising from the sofa. “She’s only little.”

Danny didn’t have a single objection.


	7. Chapter 7

From his perch on Jack’s hip, Janet looked small again – just like Danny remembered. Of course, being up there also meant that he got the full force of her glare at Jack, reminding him of yet another advantage to being little. Janet hadn’t glared at him like that for ages.

“Dr Fraiser.” Jack nodded to her. Danny knew he’d call her Janet more often than not, especially in their home, but this time he was being formal – showing respect.

“Colonel.” Janet responded in kind, although the glare had yet to weaken.

Polite but determined, Danny could see that. They were squaring off for battle. Question was where were they going from here? Should he be engaging his own glare? Probably not. Didn’t seem to matter how much someone understood he wasn’t a kid, glaring at them inevitably rubbed them up the wrong way. MacKenzie could probably give him some fancy psychological reason for it, if he was ever inclined to ask.

“We’re here to see Daniel.” A statement, Jack wasn’t taking no for an answer. Almost a challenge to the diminutive doctor. Unable to help himself, Danny twisted in Jack’s arms to get a better view of Janet’s reaction.

Hands on hips wasn’t typically a good sign.

“Please, Janet?” Danny added, hoping that his pleading would enhance Jack’s determination.

Then again, this was Janet, probably not someone who’d respond well to pleading.

“I want your word…”

Aha! She’s agreeing! No actual bloodshed! Danny was so relieved he forgot that he was supposed to be holding onto Jack’s neck, instinctively raising his arms in celebration. Fortunately, a reflexive squeeze from Jack both held him in place and reminded him to listen to the conditions.

“… and you will not upset him any further.”

“Done,” said Jack.

“How can we possibly know…?” began Danny, before a further squeeze from Jack suggested he kept quiet.

“Just tread carefully,” Janet reassured him. “Remember, Daniel’s had a terrible shock – he needs you two.”

Danny nodded seriously, his gaze falling to his counterpart, still nearly motionless on the bed.

“Talk to him. He can hear you, even with the sedative.” Then, with a final, devastating, full eye contact glare at Jack, Janet left the room.

“Well then, kid,” Jack gently set Danny down on the bed beside Daniel. “Any thoughts?”

For a few long moments thoughts were pretty much all Danny had, looking at what they’d done to Daniel. How could they have had such an effect? But then he reminded himself why they were there.

“I’ve had this nightmare before,” he told Jack simply, looking up to see if the man understood. 

He got it.

“Daniel,” said Jack, quietly settling on the opposite side of Daniel, “you’re in luck. You have here the only two guys in the entire universe who’re truly experienced with this particular nightmare.”

“Very experienced,” agreed Danny, reaching out to grab Daniel’s hand.

************

It was hours before Daniel woke up. Hours and hours of talking him through the nightmare of their parents’ death. Danny didn’t think he’d relived it so many times since it’d first happened, it was worse than visiting the gamekeeper – but then maybe that was the point. A sort of penance.

Jack had been amazing. Sure, so it was Danny who actually remembered the events Daniel was living through in his sleep, Jack hadn’t even seen it the way Sam had, but he seemed to know exactly what to say, and exactly when, even better than Danny did. He’d had practice Danny hadn’t had with this one, it was obvious. Whilst Danny might know all the ins and outs of the cause, it was Jack who knew what worked when it came to soothing a sub-conscious thinking about it. It was confidence building – if Jack had been successfully talking Danny out of his nightmares, not to mention pre-amnesia pre-ascended Daniel, surely he was working his magic on Daniel now? 

Or not. Even as Danny had the thought, the groan of a waking Daniel seemed to suggest that just soothing the nightmare hadn’t been enough. 

Nonetheless, as Daniel finally opened his eyes to look at them, Danny was filled with relief. Relief that he wasn’t comatose, or bound for one of MacKenzie’s cells. Relief that what they’d reminded him of hadn’t been too much. Maybe just relief that they’d helped. 

It was short-lived.

Instead of full grown, if rather vacant, Daniel, they’d apparently got the eight year old version. In an adult body. Seeing himself with an adult he had no recollection of, and panicking that he’d somehow been spirited away from his parents by someone who might even have engineered their deaths, Daniel struck out, all the time yelling for help.

Under normal circumstances, even a fully grown Daniel was no match for Jack. Not only was Jack bigger, he was well trained. But this was different. Daniel was fighting like a cornered eight year old, not realising that his body was much larger than that. It seemed that eight year olds had some skills they’d left behind as adults - Danny was half wondering if he should be taking notes.

Knocked onto the floor for the second time, Jack frantically motioned to Danny to get out of the way. “Get Janet,” he hissed, turning back to the giant, frightened kid.

Danny, his heart racing, paused mid-stride. He’d been about to go to Jack’s aid, desperately trying to work out exactly how to go about that as big Daniel had attacked his friend. Would Jack be OK if he left to find Janet? For that matter, would Jack’s instincts get the better of him, and leave Daniel in trouble? Despite his fear, Danny was nearly overwhelmed with sympathy for what Daniel was feeling.

Finally recognising that there was no way he and his puny body could even slow Daniel down, at least until Daniel was calm enough to put his glasses on and look at him, Danny raced out of the room. 

He really hoped Janet wasn’t going to blame him for this.

*******

It took Jack, Janet and a second low dose of sedative before Daniel was calmed enough to take a good look at Danny. In that time, Danny felt as though he was still reliving the entire episode with his parents alongside him – more so than when he was dreaming in fact. Even as he was slowly relaxing into Jack’s arms, Daniel was muttering about Nick coming and how he was going to get back to Egypt.

Thirty years on, Danny remembered far too well.

Daniel, on the other hand, didn’t seem to remember anything else – not even Vis Uban, apparently. So it wasn’t really that great a shock when he regarded Danny with something resembling alarm.

“Who’re you?” Daniel’s voice, despite maintaining its usual tone, still managed remind them that - for the moment - they were dealing with an eight year old.

Danny paused, glancing at both Jack and Janet, as uncertain of himself as he’d ever been. Was there a good way to tell Daniel this?

Janet nodded at him, a small, sad smile crossing her lips. 

Jack too nodded, a simple affirmative. There was no accompanying smile. Jack wasn’t in the mood for smiling at the moment. 

Danny took a deep breath. “I’m you.”

A range of emotions flickered across Daniel’s face as he continued to stare at Danny, everything from pure outrage to sheer bewilderment. Danny supposed he didn’t blame him, but he didn’t know how else to explain. Surely Daniel could see with his own eyes that it was the truth?

“You can’t be.” Daniel was obstinate and certain.

Danny frowned, wondering what on earth his next step should be, not that he was unaccustomed to a little scepticism. Before he could come up with anything convincing, Jack butted in with his own tack. “Who is he then? Why do you recognise him?”

Daniel paused. “He looks like me,” he admitted. “But I’m here, so he can’t be.” Another pause. “Unless I’m dead too. Am I dead too?” He sounded relieved. “Does that mean I can see my parents?”

Was he dead too? Now there was a loaded question. Hesitantly, Danny smiled at him. “You’re not dead,” he told him. “I’m your clone.” He heard Janet cough meaningfully behind him, but Jack’s interruption had refuelled his confidence. This was him, with all the same personality traits he had. Give him a potential reason for something, and he’ll stop denying it outright, he’ll be too busy trying to work out how it could have happened. 

Just like the aliens and the pyramids – even if it was so far away in this Daniel’s future. 

“Wow.” There was the eight year old. “Wow.”

Danny grinned.

“How did I get cloned?” demanded Daniel.

Taking a moment to try to think how to explain Thor to an eight year old, Danny was too slow to get a word in edgeways.

“Why? When?” 

“Was it when I was really little so you had time to grow up?” suddenly energised, Daniel was hard to stop.

“Why are you here now?” 

“How old are you?”

An easy one, yet Danny still wasn’t fast enough to respond.

“Where do you live?”

Finally, Danny managed to allow words to leave his brain fast enough to keep up with his eight year old self. “Here,” he spluttered, very much as though he was responding to a quick-fire quiz.

“Here?” Daniel shuddered to a halt, finally looking round and once more taking in Jack and Janet’s presence.

“Are they your parents?”

“No,” began Danny, trying to ignore the mental image of Jack married to Janet. “Technically I have the same parents as you,” he winced, hoping he wouldn’t regret those words, but for the moment Daniel was too engrossed in the mystery that was Danny. How often did a boy discover he had a clone after all? “But I live with Jack.”

Daniel looked up at Jack, who by now had taken advantage of Daniel’s distraction and moved to a safer position at the foot of the bed. “Hey.” Jack gave a small wave.

Daniel nodded back, his expression serious, then turned back to Danny. “So you lost your parents too?” Gradually, tears began to drip down Daniel’s cheeks – not because of his own pain, but at the idea that Danny had lost the same parents at his age, and without even knowing them.

“Yeah.” Danny choked up at the sympathy on Daniel’s face, unsure how to explain to him in that moment that he had no need to try to take Danny’s own pain.

“You’re like my little brother,” sobbed Daniel. “And you didn’t even know Mum and Dad.”

Danny couldn’t help it. Crawling onto the bed and into Daniel’s arms, he began to cry too.


	8. Chapter 8

Peering silently through the opening into the living room, Jack watched the two boys having a wail of a time together. A part of him wanted Daniel to be stuck at eight indefinitely, maybe give him and Danny a chance to heal what had happened the first time around. The adult body didn’t seem to matter at all, Daniel still ran round like a giant eight year old, and he delighted in being able to lift his ‘little brother’ so easily - it was just harder on Jack when he got tired. Somehow, especially after the scare he’d had the other day, Jack didn’t mind that much.

It wasn’t going to last though. Already Jack’d had Janet remind him twice that he and Danny were only looking after Daniel on the grounds that they were going to try to move him on from this state. It was such a shame, Danny was really embracing being Daniel’s little brother, it was like he’d finally got used to how to be a kid.

Jack shrugged, he supposed leading by example probably did make a lot of sense – in a twisted way Daniel was the perfect role model for Danny there.

He just wasn’t supposed to be.

**************

Danny knew as well as Jack did that they were going to have to help Daniel snap out of it. He knew that in a few hours he and Jack were going to sit down with Daniel and tell him all about the next part of his life. The part where Nick left him and no one bothered to take any photos that might jog his memory now. The part that had completely changed his outlook on life.

Until he’d met Daniel, Danny had forgotten what he used to be like. How it’d been living with his parents. Just like it could’ve been if he’d had someone like Jack to go to back then when they’d died.

But Daniel was in his thirties. No matter what might have been nice, he’d been through all this stuff already, and the only thing for it was to remind him so that he could have some sort of life now. So that he could resume his life, even. General Hammond was ready and willing to take Daniel back, he could be travelling through the stargate again.

For perhaps the first time, Danny wasn’t filled with jealousy at the thought.

**************

“Daniel?”

Daniel turned to look at Danny, clearly sensing the tone of voice and quickly switching from play to serious. “What?”

“I have some stuff I have to tell you about.” Danny sighed inwardly, he still really didn’t want to do this. But it had to be done, if nothing else the prospect of Janet’s wrath when she discovered they hadn’t even tried yet made good incentive. 

“Like what?”

“About you, and me, and how I was really made,” explained Danny patiently, knowing that he could no longer delay the inevitable.

“OK, what about that? Did Dad take me to get a copy so that I could have a brother?” Daniel was all enthusiasm, it was so hard to believe that he’d so recently lost his parents.

Kids bounce back well, thought Danny ironically. “You know how you’re much bigger than you should be?” he began.

“Yeah…”

“That’s because you’re really grown up. Your mind’s just forgotten about it,” Danny continued gently.

Daniel nodded, that much he’d probably guessed to be honest.

“Janet said that we should try to help you catch up with the rest of your memories. Because they’re all still in there, you just don’t seem to be able to access them at the moment.”

“Right?”

“So I’m going to tell you about what happened after your parents died.”

“Our parents,” pointed out Daniel.

“Our parents,” Danny conceded.

“How do you know what happened?”

Danny sighed. This was going to take a really long time. In fact, if Daniel interrupted like this all the way through he was probably going to start sympathising with Jack! “I was cloned from the grown up you,” he explained.

“You remember everything?”

“Pretty much.”

“You know that makes you like a fortune teller?” Daniel teased Danny.

Danny flushed, “not exactly.”

“So go on, Danny. Tell me my future.”

Or his past. Still, it was good that Daniel was along for the ride, Danny told himself, taking a deep breath. It would make this so much easier. “So,” he tried again, “after Mom and Dad died, you went into foster care, which is where you’re looked after by another adult for a while.”

“Did I like it?” butted in Daniel.

“Sometimes,” Danny tried to sound as positive as possible. “Your first foster parents were very temporary – just for a few weeks while they tried to find Nick.”

“Did they find him?”

“Yes, but first you lived with them for a few weeks. They were called Stan and Gina. They tried really hard to talk to you about what happened with Mom and Dad, and to reassure you about Nick, but they didn’t really understand. They didn’t know anything about Egypt or archaeology, so it was hard for them to understand what you wanted.” Danny’s eyes glazed over as he thought about those first foster parents. It’d been hard to see at the time, but they really had tried incredibly hard to bring him out of his shell. It’d been before Nick’s rejection, and before any of the troubles, so he should’ve been completely receptive, but somehow even then he’d been unreachable. As if the shock of losing his parents and living in a completely foreign country was too much for him to enable himself to let anyone in for a while. He’d just been waiting for Nick.

Except Nick had never come.

Daniel was a good listener, quite unlike the child Danny knew he’d been when he’d stayed with Stan and Gina. It was as though his time with Jack and Danny had completely altered his response to his parents’ death. Was the difference so fundamental? Stan and Gina were certainly much more what the state would recommend for a bereaved boy. Then again, what did they know? What had they ever known – when it came to him?

There were no photos of Stan, Gina or their home, and Danny hadn’t been feeling much like keeping a journal of events at the time, so details of that time were pretty sketchy, but he managed to map out enough that he felt Daniel should have been joining in like he had before – gradually remembering events as they unfolded in his mind.

This time though, nothing happened. Nothing at all. Not even when he talked about Nick leaving, and Daniel moving to an orphanage for a while.

Danny kept trying. He managed to talk his way through foster home after foster home, some good, some terrible, without as much as a flicker of recognition from Daniel. He discussed Nick again, he even talked about school bullies and being accelerated through classes all the time. Daniel managed to maintain interest throughout, not to mention ask umpteen questions about every situation Danny spoke of. Oh, he wanted to know all right, but it was like being sat down for story time.

He didn’t remember a thing.

**************

It was Jack who had finally called a halt to proceedings. And later, after Daniel had dozed off, it was Jack who Danny got to speak to about it as the realisation that Daniel could turn out to be stuck at eight years old began to take hold. 

What would happen to him? Daniel’s body wasn’t growing like Danny’s, so there was no reason for anything to change – would that mean he’d be stuck that way forever? Danny couldn’t help but worry. Even if he and Jack were a positive influence, if Daniel never reached nine, what would they do?


	9. Chapter 9

Danny had a plan.

It had come to him while they were in the park. After the stresses of the last couple of days, Jack had decided that they all needed to get out for a while, and the park had been an easy choice. No stresses in getting there, no one who was likely to question them about anything, just the three of them and a few swings and roundabouts. 

The swings had been great. Jack had insisted that both he and Daniel should sit on the swings and he would push them each in turn, leaving the two of them to engage in a little friendly brotherly competition as each of them tried to climb higher and higher. After the first few pushes, Jack hadn’t been needed at all, and he’d just stood back laughing at them as Danny’d found himself more and more determined to swing higher than Daniel, despite his massive weight and strength deficit, giggling madly all the way in a manner he would never have dreamed of before he’d met Daniel.

Exhilarated, they had moved on to the roundabout. There, as Danny sat clinging on to the middle, both Jack and Daniel had used their longer legs to spin up to fantastic speeds. Speeds they’d never have managed when they were little the first time round. Little Danny had found himself wrapping both arms round the inner railings just to be certain that he’d stay on until Jack’d grabbed onto his hand reassuringly, the firm grip promising he wasn’t going anywhere.

Then there was the slide. The slide was a good one, built on the side of a small hill so that it was far longer than it might normally have been. It was well used too, shiny enough that Danny could see he wouldn’t stick halfway down, even though he’d never even visited this playground before. Enthusiastically, he and Daniel had raced to the top, with Jack sauntering down the side of the hill, apparently imagining that he had a camera to catch the moment. Danny had made it first, although he suspected that Daniel had let him win – despite intellectually understanding that Danny had all the memories of his adult self, Daniel didn’t seem to be ready to let go of the idea that Danny was his little brother. He would’ve made a really good big brother too, Danny was certain of it.

Allowed to win or otherwise, Danny had taken full advantage when he reached the top of the slide, leaping straight onto it without giving Daniel a moment to change his mind. It wasn’t until he’d reached the very bottom, and realised that Daniel was no longer on his tail, that he’d looked up to see what the problem was.

Daniel was too big. His brain was telling him firmly that he was eight, but his body said he was way too big to play on the slide. It wasn’t that Daniel was really upset – he was disappointed, but he’d had a good time otherwise, and certainly they didn’t hang round the slide a long time making him watch – but it was another knock. One more little sign reminding him that everything was not quite as it was supposed to be. 

Danny suspected it was a lot like he felt when the others went through the stargate without him.

And that was when the idea hit him.   
He didn’t know why it hadn’t occurred to him before. Once it’d crossed his mind it sat there prodding him like a guilty conscience. It was so obvious. They’d been worrying about Daniel never growing up, because in an already adult body nothing was changing around him to force that, and there was the answer staring them in the face all along. Just sat around in Area 51 gathering dust. 

Would it really work? Could they use that body swapping device of Machello’s? Danny had to admit, after last time the thing still gave him the creeps, but it was perfect! Surely it was the ideal solution? Or was there more to it than simple mechanics?

Would Daniel really be happier if his body was 6, instead of 38?

After all this time, could Danny bring himself to grow up again that suddenly?

Oh, sure, at first it would’ve been straightforward, desirable even, to be full size again, to travel through the stargate with the others… To drive… But he’d got rather used to living with Jack, even if he didn’t really need to as such, and since Daniel had arrived, he’d been recognising advantages to his size all over the place.

Danny shook his head, what was he thinking? He didn’t want to stay a kid and take years to grow up if he could avoid it! He could hang out with Jack anyway, and he wasn’t that scared of Janet so he could handle the increased glaring. If they did this he’d be allowed to go back to his life!

Except technically, it wasn’t his. 

And OK, he might miss all the hugs.

As they walked home, Danny trailed the other two in a world of his own, something Jack might have worried about if he hadn’t been so busy trying to cheer Daniel up. His head was alive with questions. What would Jack think? Would Daniel be pleased? What if Daniel’s memory came back? Would they have to swap back again? Could he handle being big and then potentially losing it again? It was Daniel’s body after all.

What would Daniel think of his body being two years younger than it should be? Was that worse than being older? He’d fit on the slide of course, but that was hardly the measure of his whole life.

Danny didn’t know what to think.

It was dark by the time Jack and Daniel ganged up on him, demanding to know why on earth he was so quiet. He’d managed to waste away the whole day. Somehow, despite his careful debate of all the arguments, it hadn’t led him any closer to a conclusion.

“I’ve had an idea.” Danny looked warily up at the faces of his two friends, aware of the concern in each of them.

“I never like it when that happens,” commented Jack. “It tends to lead to trips to the Infirmary and we’ve not completely got away with last time yet.”

“What about?” Daniel added brightly, as open and optimistic as Danny could still dimly remember being as a child. 

“How to fix us.”

Danny waited. He had some idea of what Jack was going to say about this, but as strange as it seemed, he had no idea how Daniel might react. 

“Right.” Jack’s raised eyebrows told the whole story. “Am I the only one who doesn’t think you need fixing?”

“Well…” Danny wasn’t sure what to say to that, after all, he’d had his own doubts. But yes, ideally, he did need fixing – almost as badly as Daniel did.

Daniel didn’t seem to be objecting, at least for the moment. Danny wondered if he was thinking along the lines of better memory recall – he had been pretty keen to get that straightened out.

“… I was thinking we could swap bodies.” Finally, he’d said it. Almost afraid to breathe, Danny observed Jack and Daniel – waiting for a reaction.

“You want to use that doohickey of Machello’s?” Jack didn’t sound happy, not that Danny had expected him to be. “After everything that he’s done to you?!”

“We know how it works now,” offered Danny, still watching Daniel rather than Jack, trying not to think about any of the ‘other stuff’ Machello had brought about in his life. 

“Oh for crying out loud, Danny! Stuff like that, you never know how it works – not enough to use it when you don’t have to,” protested Jack. “You could end up with the body of an ant or something.”

“I don’t think an ant’s hands would reach.” Danny remained calm.

“There could be a booby trap, Machello was a devious little s.o.b.”

“Sam’s never found anything.”

“What if…”

Opposite Danny, Daniel zoned out. He didn’t need to know any more about the problems, just whether he wanted to go ahead. If he did this, would it make it easier or harder to get past those images of the walls of that tomb crashing down on his parents? Would Jack keep him? He guessed Nick would be too old by now, even if Danny hadn’t suggested he wouldn’t be interested, if thirty years had really passed…

If he did it Danny wouldn’t be his little brother anymore, but his big brother. 

But people wouldn’t look at him funny for dancing round in the playground, and he’d fit on the slide.

What about being six instead of eight? Daniel glanced at Danny, still arguing with Jack over details. Did he want to be that small again?

He wasn’t sure he wanted to grow up this fast, but what if he remembered what’d happened in between? If he started thinking he was grown up and it turned out he wasn’t?

Daniel shook his head. He didn’t feel like he’d ever remember, when Danny had described it all, it’d felt interesting, but nothing more than that. Besides, that wasn’t what he was worried about. He could manage either way, with Jack and Danny to look after him, he was sure he’d be OK with being big or little.

But what about Danny? He had to look out for him too.

What if Danny was supposed to be little for now? No matter what he thought he was. Mom and Dad had always been great believers in fate, maybe now was the time to listen to them.


	10. Chapter 10

“Are you certain this is a good idea, Colonel?” General Hammond’s gaze met Jack’s, his eyes seeming to bore into him in search of all the reasons Jack might have to support this plan.

“No, sir,” Jack told him matter of factly. He was pretty certain he’d never advocated it at all. In fact, if he didn’t like it, and Janet was fuming so much she’d told him if anything went wrong it’d be him switching bodies with Danny, he wasn’t at all sure why they were there.

And yet they were. 

Disengaging from the General, Jack turned back to the two Daniels. The two of them, so mismatched in size and yet each managing to hold a virtually identical stance, stood at either side of Machello’s crazy body swapping machine.

Why had Machello built the thing anyway? Had he really planned out swapping bodies with Daniel in that sort of detail so far in advance? Well, OK, Daniel was just in the wrong place at the wrong time – but even the rest of it? 

Beside the point, Jack, he told himself. This is about Daniel and Danny, and Danny’s really bad idea.

How the hell were they all supposed to cope with the aftermath of “got to grow up in real time” Danny being full size all of a sudden, and Daniel suddenly being even smaller than he thinks he should be and still hung up on his Mum and Dad? It was making Jack’s brain ache. He’d been wandering round the base grouching about it and trying not to think ever since Hammond had agreed to get the device sent over. Venting to Carter hadn’t exactly helped matters either. When he’d told her what the two of them had in mind, she’d dived off into some bizarre quantum theory related lecture about parallel universes and how each of the alternative results to this moment would almost certainly be played out somewhere.

Jack had wondered if she was offering to take him to that mirror thing Daniel had found and help him find the universe where they’d never decided to go ahead with this at all. But she hadn’t said anything and it didn’t seem right to ask, so he’d just added that little snippet to all the reasons his head hurt.

Naturally, Teal’c hadn’t really had a whole lot to say in the first place, although he’d specifically sought Jack out in order to not say it. Eventually, he’d asked if Jack had believed DanielJacksons could be dissuaded from taking this path, and when Jack had responded with a string of expletives, Teal’c had merely nodded and walked away.

Of course, Jonas was excited. Figured, at least someone was enjoying himself.

None of them were there now though, because of Janet’s fears about a mix up. Since it didn’t seem that there was much else to be mixed up, all Jack could assume was that Janet wanted to prove to Danny that he couldn’t have it all his own way. Jack figured it probably would’ve been a handy lesson, if Danny had been going to remain a kid. He didn’t think it was something that was really going to sink in for the adult version though.

He was going to miss that kid. Not that he’d be gone exactly, but… Jack gritted his teeth, trying to steer himself away from it all before he popped any more blood vessels.

So, focus, there was just him, Janet and the General. And two Daniels. And Machello’s machine. Stood in the lab, trying not to think and watching to see what happened.

Jack was pretty certain the waiting was going to kill him.

*****************

Away from Jack and the others, Daniel and Danny stood on either side of the machine. Each of them had their left hand resting on it, but stood with their right hovering over the second handle, their body language shouting indecision to anyone who was listening.

Danny looked up at Daniel, trying to picture himself once more in that body. Would it still suit him? Was this even right for him anymore? He sounded as though he was considering an old set of clothes. A decision that had already been made, yet somehow it was still coming back to haunt him. He supposed it had a lot to do with his acceptance of his fate. He’d never expected the opportunity to grow up again, Jack had become, to all extents and purposes, his Dad, and he’d never anticipated that changing.

Dimly, he realised he wished he’d taken the time to give Jack one last hug. It wasn’t that they never hugged when he was big, but it wasn’t the same somehow. He definitely should have taken the time to savour that. As it was he couldn’t even remember the specifics of their last hug. It didn’t seem right.

But then he’d been so amazed that General Hammond had agreed to this at all, he’d been in a hurry. Rushing to get everything set up before anyone changed their mind and took the device away again, after all, it wasn’t as if anyone had seemed particularly pleased about his idea. Even Daniel had taken a while to think about it.

Danny swallowed. He hadn’t rushed Daniel into this had he? It was important Daniel was sure.

He looked across at his new brother, no longer just his clone. The “man” looked nervous, but he was holding onto the device with one hand, clearly interested in the idea but not yet committed.

Danny looked at his own hands, reflecting Daniel’s thoughts. He wasn’t committed either. Did he really still have doubts?

He closed his eyes. One last moment to think this through, he told himself.

Did he want to be big again?

Yes. He did. Definitely.

Did Daniel want to be small?

Think so – he’ll be more comfortable, and he agreed so he must do.

Right. No over thinking, Danny reminded himself. That was all he needed to know.

Slowly and deliberately, Danny opened his eyes and placed his right hand on the device.

***********

Daniel watched, half hoping that Danny would chicken out. As appealing as being (almost) the kid of his memories sounded, Daniel still had doubts.

But then Danny grabbed hold of the machine and his hopes were dashed. 

Taking a deep, calming breath, Daniel looked at his own hand, still hovering over the handle. The final decision was his then.

It wasn’t easy to be sure. Oh, Danny acted all grown up for his size, but would he really be happy being big? Daniel was sure he remembered his Mom and Dad telling him that everything happens for a reason. Was doing this messing with the whole universe? Or was Danny’s idea just what was meant to happen?

Daniel wasn’t sure, it just worried him. And it worried Jack too, he’d seen it. He hadn’t known Jack for long, but if he was this worried, surely there was something wrong with Danny’s plan?

On the other hand, he trusted Danny too, and Danny was holding both handles. Waiting for him.

He sighed, this was so hard. How was he supposed to make this kind of decision? Everything in his body was screaming that this was all completely unnatural, and yet…

And yet it had sounded so logical when Danny had explained it. Such a simple solution to both of their lives.

Wouldn’t Danny’s parents have told him about fate too? Did that mean Danny knew something that he, Daniel, didn’t remember? Something that explained that this was OK?

He hadn’t mentioned it, but it was possible, Daniel shrugged. 

In which case, the only answer he needed was whether he wanted to be small or not.

Jack, despite his annoyance, had explicitly promised that Daniel would always have a place with him. He wouldn’t be alone. He wouldn’t be that little boy Danny had described. Jack would be his Dad, and Danny… Well, Danny would stop being his little brother and become his big brother instead.

That didn’t sound so bad. They weren’t his parents, but even after so little time with them, he could feel he would be fine.

And, even better, he wouldn’t be expected to know how to do all sorts of grown up stuff. 

He just needed to hope that his memory didn’t come back – but then it wasn’t as if he had any control over that anyway. It didn’t feel as if there was any memory to come back in the first place.

So he might as well. What was he waiting for?

No more thoughts, Daniel told himself as he shifted his right hand onto the device.


	11. Chapter 11

Despite himself, Jack couldn’t believe his eyes. “They did it, they really did it?” he murmured under his breath - his tone implying swear words which never actually left his mouth - only belatedly realising that Janet was stood next to him and he was speaking aloud. How could they really go ahead with it though? The look on Janet’s face, despite the disapproving eyebrow she was directing at him, reflected his own utter disbelief. What were they thinking? 

Then – a split second later – he had other things to worry about. 

Almost immediately Daniel took hold of that last handle, a loud whine had started up in the depths of the machine. It was unnerving to say the least. Granted they hadn’t used the device since getting Daniel out of Machello’s body, and Jack’s memory was far from perfect, but he was pretty certain it hadn’t done that before. Then, perhaps as much as a second later, Jack had stopped worrying about the noise as an explosion ripped through the entire device, stopping the whine and sending Danny and numerous pieces of metallic debris flying across the room, a few of them narrowly missing the three spectators as they stood helplessly on the sidelines. Behind the machine, apparently more protected than any of them, Daniel simply slumped down where he was, unconscious but not obviously hurt. 

Faced with two injured Daniels, it was hard to know which way to turn. Where did his responsibility lie? What did his gut feeling say? If he truly had to choose, which Daniel would it be? For that matter, what difference did it make, given that he didn’t know which one was which anyway? Yet still the decision seemed important. Despite his desperate need to check on both Daniels, Jack found himself uncharacteristically frozen to the spot, his breath stuck in his throat as he watched the scene move on without him – several of the medical team even stepping around him as they rushed to the two casualties. 

In the end it was Janet who broke the deadlock. As she stepped away from a cursory exam of Danny (or at least, Danny’s body, Jack corrected himself) and handed him over to the care of her staff, she motioned Jack over in her place while she went to personally check on Daniel. Relieved beyond measure at finally being able to do something, Jack obeyed without even questioning, his feet moving as if purely under Janet’s command rather than his own. Something Danny would no doubt find amusing later.

Wherever Danny was now.

As he cradled the small, limp body of one of his young friends, Jack discovered that which Daniel he was holding didn’t matter anyway. Whichever way round they were, one glance at Machello’s device suggested they were staying that way, and whoever was in this child’s body was soon to be his kid for good. Jack wasn’t sure if that was a relief or not, certainly there were potential repercussions, but it was nice to know that he wasn’t likely to have to go through all this again.

But then what about them? How were the Daniels going to take this? 

Either way.

**********

“Jack?”

Jack’s head snapped round, away from the form of the small boy lying unnaturally quietly in an infirmary bed, to focus on the man to his other side.

“Danny?” It had really worked?

The younger man smiled shyly, amusement shining through his eyes. “Not recently,” he responded.

And yet? Jack frowned, puzzled. “But you…?” he trailed off, not wanting to even attempt to hack his way through the tangle of possibilities.

“I think I got a few of Danny’s memories,” explained Daniel, patiently. “Either that or the machine helped me remember – it’s kind of hard to tell.”

“Right.” Jack paused. “But you’re sure you’re Daniel?”

“In the flesh,” he promised.

“Nothing about Thor, or clones, or driving my car without a licence?” Jack waved his hands near his head, not quite making a circle to suggest his friend might not be all there.

Daniel shrugged. “There’re glimpses.”

“Big help, Daniel. What about other stuff? Like maybe Abydos or Anubis?”

“Oh yeah, I remember about that.” Daniel winced.

“And dying,” added Jack, quietly enough that he wasn’t at all sure Daniel could hear him.

“Yeah.” Daniel looked down, studying the sheet as he clasped it in his hands.

“Right. Sorry.” Jack really wished he hadn’t asked that, but then he’d always been so grateful Danny hadn’t remembered, it seemed important to check.

“I’m sure I’m not Danny,” Daniel reassured him. “I’m Daniel – the one who spent the year with Oma and visited you when you were with Ba’al.”

Jack flinched, but continued nonetheless. “They’re just memories, remember those robots? They thought they were real too.”

“This is different,” insisted Daniel. “More than just memories.”

“How can you be sure?” Still uncertain Jack pressed, needing to be sure himself.

For a few moments, Daniel was silent. Not obviously thinking, more nervous or reluctant. More than once he glanced round to see who else might be listening. Then, finally, he leaned towards Jack, lowering his voice to the point where if Jack hadn’t been able to see his lips move, he wouldn’t have been completely certain he was speaking.

“Because you don’t feel like my Dad,” whispered Daniel, blushing despite his lowered voice.

Touched beyond belief, Jack still wasn’t convinced. Just yesterday he and Danny had been comforting Daniel over the loss of his Dad, and it’d been clear just how important Dr Jackson senior had been to Danny too. How could Daniel suggest that he was giving Jack the answer – the proof he needed? Danny, for all that he sometimes had to behave as though Jack was his Dad, didn’t really feel that way either. They were friends, Jack was there for him, nothing more. Almost reluctantly, Jack opened his mouth to express his misgivings to Daniel and put the record straight, when he found himself stopped in his tracks.

Written all over the younger man’s face was the warmth of the friendship they’d been cultivating for so long – the one that had been missing when they’d been on Vis Uban. It was there, real and tangible, for the first time in so long it was Jack who felt like he couldn’t remember. And yet, as similar as Danny and Daniel were, and as much as Jack had always had a habit of behaving rather paternally towards Daniel anyway, he could see without a doubt that it was different.

“Danny really does feel that way, you know,” Daniel told him. “As much as he might fight it.”

“You really got to peek into his brain?” asked Jack.

Daniel nodded. “I’m so glad we didn’t swap.”

“I’ll bet,” mused Jack, thinking of when Danny had first arrived.

Daniel shook his head. “Don’t tell him I mentioned this, but I don’t think Danny realised just how devastated he would’ve been.”

Jack glanced over at the small, prone form in the next bed, trying to imagine getting that kind of insight into his mind. “I never really know how he’s thinking,” he admitted.

Daniel smiled. “He’s your kid,” he announced with such certainty that Jack had no choice but to believe him. And that was it – what else did he need to know about what his kid was thinking?

Daniel was gone before Danny woke up. Off trying to catch up with the rest of his life - with a little help from Carter and Teal’c. Probably the rest of the base too, the archaeologist seemed to know everyone. Jack couldn’t join them though - no longer unsure of his place, Jack remained at Danny’s side, taking the opportunity to watch the boy sleep.

It was an opportunity he was expecting to have again and again over the next few years (at least unless Danny had another harebrained scheme), but he still wanted to savour it.

And how close he’d come to losing it.

In hindsight, Jack realised that perhaps a lot of Danny’s drive to do this had been to help Daniel, rather than himself – a fact Jack cursed himself for not recognising sooner, beyond relieved that some higher power had taken the opportunity to intervene and prevent them from the catastrophe they would have created.

Of course, technically, an early report from Carter had suggested that the machine had malfunctioned because its subjects were essentially identical – obviously something Machello hadn’t thought to test for – but Jack liked to believe that someone was looking out for them. Maybe Thor.

Or even Oma.

As Jack sent up a silent prayer to Oma – just in case she should change her mind about anything – Danny came round.

“Jack?”

Familiar territory. “Hey kid, how’re you feeling?”

“Like myself.” The boy’s voice was pitched somewhere between huge disappointment and massive relief, Jack suspected even he didn’t know which way to go.

“There’s a lot to be said for that,” grinned Jack, holding his arms out for Danny to crawl into them.

“Even at 6?” asked Danny, his face partially buried in Jack’s neck.

“I can’t do this with Daniel,” observed Jack.

Danny chuckled. “True. I think Janet would complain about the strain to her Infirmary chairs.”

Amongst other things. Leaning Danny back, Jack looked the boy right in the eye. “You are OK though, aren’t you?”

“Much better than I’d have expected actually,” responded Danny, suddenly sounding unexpectedly chipper. “I must’ve got used to you.”

“Ha, ha.” Remembering what Daniel had told him, however, Jack didn’t shrug off the remark. “You’re happy living with me?”

Danny smiled, then pulled himself forward again, squeezing his arms tightly round Jack’s neck affectionately. “My Mom always said that if you can’t say the words, then it’s good to demonstrate. And I think she preferred demonstration – even though she liked words.”

“Your Mom?” asked Jack, trying to recall if Danny had ever voluntarily mentioned her.

“A present from Daniel,” said Danny. “We got to share a few bits and pieces.”

“He helped you remember being a kid better?”

“Seems like it,” replied Danny, shrugging. “He’s probably right, it could come in handy.”

“Sounds like we all got a good deal,” agreed Jack.

Danny didn’t respond verbally, there was nothing else to say. Content with silence, the two of them shared their relief by demonstration, sat on a chair together in Janet’s Infirmary.

Absently, somewhere in the back of his mind, while the rest of him was revelling in what he still had, Jack couldn’t help really hoping that Janet didn’t get it into her head that now was a good time for her to take her revenge on him.

Well it would’ve really spoiled the moment.


	12. Epilogue

Even with his eyes closed, Danny felt Daniel put his right hand onto the second handle. Suddenly, there was a surge of what he could only describe as electricity and then as he opened his eyes again, he found he was staring at – well – himself.

Except it wasn’t himself anymore. It was Daniel, at 6.

After all this time, Danny had found a way to make himself big.

Feeling the strength in his limbs, Danny’s first instinct was to leap up and down with joy – he had his own body (or at least, what felt like it ought to be his body) back, he could carry on with his life! But something stopped him – either the look of uncertainty in Daniel’s eyes across from him, or a vague feeling at the back of his mind that fully grown Daniel Jacksons probably didn’t do a lot of the whooping thing – so he held himself back, choosing instead to check on Daniel.

“Daniel?”

“Yeah?”

Danny grinned. “It is you then, just checking it wasn’t Jack or Janet in there.”

“All me.” Daniel was staring in wonder at his newly shrunk hands. “Bit less of me than last time I looked,” he added. “I think I must’ve grown loads before I got to 8.”

Danny’s heart lurched. “Too different?”

Daniel shook his head. “Better than being grown up,” he said. “Now that was too different.”

Danny smiled. “So you’re OK?” He glanced back at the machine. “You know we can swap back if you need to?” He took pains not to catch the eyes of any of their potential intermediaries, should it come to that. He had a pretty clear idea Jack wouldn’t be in a hurry to test out his 6 year old body – not that Jack was a suitable candidate after the first time they’d played with this machine.

Cutting into Danny’s thoughts, Daniel nodded. “I know. I’m fine.” He did look over as Jack sauntered up to him, gently placing a hand on his shoulder.

“So, hey kids. Did it work?”

“Sure, Jack,” replied Danny, rolling his eyes affectionately at his friend. 

Jack grinned, turning to Daniel. “Well, I guess we better let the old Doc check you out, but after that, how’s about getting off home for pizza?”

As Daniel’s eyes lit up, Danny let out a sigh of relief. Daniel was really in good hands. 

“I’ll see you later Jack, Daniel,” called Danny, quietly slipping out of the room.

************

Danny sat at his desk, still feeling very much like a fish out of water. He couldn’t understand it, he’d come here most days whilst he was little anyway, why did it feel so alien now? More times than he could count he’d tried to pick up his work where he’d left off, each time reminding himself that all the struggling to cooperate with colleagues was over, and that he wasn’t going to get inexplicably tired, or discover that Jack was insisting it was time to go home. He was free to work like a normal adult, to get on with things completely independently.

It was great.

Though he hadn’t seen Jack for nearly two days which, Danny had to admit, was rather worrying him. Was Jack OK? He hoped he hadn’t been mysteriously kidnapped by the NID again or anything… 

Or what if something had happened to Daniel?

For the umpteenth time, Danny fidgeted in his chair, finally admitting to himself that there was no way on earth he was going to concentrate until he’d at least checked that Jack and Daniel were OK. He reached for the phone.

He’d sort this out, then he’d be able to work properly.

************

The living room was silent. Uncharacteristically so. Just a few days ago Jack had had both Danny and Daniel in there, running wild together, despite Daniel’s size. 

His size then anyway.

Since his downsizing, his urge to behave like a kid seemed to have been transformed from happy and well-balanced kid (despite everything) to reclusive and withdrawn kid. For whatever reason, Daniel was back in mourning.

Jack knew all the signs. He’d tried it himself, for a start. In fact, maybe it was personal experience that had put Daniel in a place to help him the first time round. It seemed strangely ironic that he’d wind up in a position to repay the favour. 

What he didn’t understand was the cause for the change of heart.

Now Jack and Daniel sat not looking at each other on opposite sides of the room. Neither of them making a sound. Jack was flummoxed, he had no idea what to do. What could possibly be causing this? Since returning from the SGC, Daniel had barely spoken to him.

He’d been on good behaviour. No cracks about artefacts or archaeologists. 

There’d been no mention of Daniel’s parents.

Nothing about wanting to remain a grown up after all.

No headaches, stomach aches etc.

Then, finally, not a moment too soon, Jack had a revelation.

It was a leap. There’d been no proof that he was even thinking along the right lines. Yet as soon as it, or rather he, crossed Jack’s mind, Jack was sure it was right.

Nicholas Ballard.

Oh yeah, he was sure. Daniel had remembered something new. Not that he’d said anything, but as soon as Jack thought of it, it was obvious. He’d got further through that traumatic life story of his. Which meant not only did he most likely remember, at the very least, that his grandfather abandoned him. But he was smart, he’d almost certainly realised that if he’d remembered something that meant he was soon to become an adult in a kid’s body – just like Danny had been.

For crying out loud, Jack sighed. Couldn’t anything ever go right?

He corrected himself. This had been one of Danny’s schemes after all, he’d known this one was going to come and bite them in the ass, it was the specifics that’d been giving him trouble. So now he knew.

He turned to the small, bewildered boy. Forget worrying about Danny’s mad schemes for now, at this moment he and Daniel had some memories to confront, and now that he knew what was going on, Jack was on the case. Disconnecting the phone so that no one (at least, with the exception of Thor) could spontaneously insist he needed to go and save the galaxy first, Jack crossed the room to sit in front of the small boy. His knees protesting as he crouched on the floor.

“Daniel, what have you remembered?”

*************

The phone was off the hook.

Slightly panicked, Danny raced to the elevator, remembering belatedly that he could now drive again without making unscheduled trips to the police station or anything – another bonus to savour. At least, it would have been if he hadn’t just spent the two days since he came in as a small person stuck on base, and totally forgotten that he no longer had a car because before that he’d been dead.

Straining to take the disappointment, not to mention his worry, in his stride, Danny hurriedly convinced an airman to drive him to Jack’s house, all the way practically embedding his fingers in the dashboard in an effort to keep control of his nerves, and most likely leaving the airman under the impression that he wasn’t happy with his driving.

As he stepped out of the car, waving the relieved man off in thanks, Danny instantly felt out of place, his discomfort settling on him like a thick blanket of fog. This was Jack’s house and he’d come uninvited. Was that still OK? He didn’t live here anymore after all. For the moment, in fact, Danny didn’t live anywhere – just on base. That was simple at least, he could handle that. Teal’c had managed for years, and Danny was all grown up again – living alone would be easy.

Visiting Jack, however, didn’t seem quite so simple, Danny noted, feeling distinctly despondent. It had only been 2 days and already he missed Jack terribly. Worse than that, he was worried about him. What if something had happened to Jack and Daniel because Danny hadn’t been there? Jack had got pretty used to having him around, and Daniel didn’t have nearly the same memories and skills Danny did. There could have been some sort of slip up.

Although there was no outward sign of any disturbance, Danny decided it would pay to be cautious. Taking a leaf out of Jack’s book, instead of knocking on the door and alerting any strangers to his presence, Danny slid up to the side of the house, using the opportunity to peer in through the window and make sure nothing was going to take him by surprise. 

There was no sign of any trouble. No NID. No police, convicts, millionaires, senators, rogue Colonels, Goa’ulds, nothing. Jack was kneeling, voluntarily, before one of his comfy chairs and there, just curled up quietly in Jack’s arms, was Daniel.

They were fine. They didn’t need him.

Suddenly terribly alone, Danny didn’t knock on the door. Rather, so as not to disturb anyone, he manoeuvred his large body away from Jack’s house and down the street – back the way he’d come. 

Maybe he could walk back to base?

*********

“Jack! Jaaaaacckk!”

More than he could ever remember needing Jack to be nearby, Danny needed his friend right now. Sat bolt upright in bed, his heart pounding as he tried to bring himself back into this reality, all Danny knew was that he couldn’t be alone right now.

“I’m right here, Danny.” Jack’s voice quietly broke through his rising hysteria, something he hadn’t even felt when they were imprisoned on Netu.

Danny threw himself into Jack’s arms. “I’m sorry,” he wailed. “I didn’t realise!”

“About what?” asked Jack, although Danny couldn’t entirely bring himself to believe that Jack didn’t already know, it felt so obvious now. 

Danny shook his head. “The body swap,” he mumbled, guiltily, conceding the possibility that Jack wasn’t psychic.

“You’re upset it didn’t work?”

“Grateful,” sniffed Danny. “It was such a bad idea.”

“Can’t argue with you there,” grinned Jack. “I take it you had a bad dream about it?”

Danny nodded, mildly embarrassed now that the initial terror had passed, but still unwilling to let go. He was no stranger to bad dreams, for that matter he was pretty used to loneliness too, but something about this had just felt that much worse. Right up there with the newly fresh memories of his parents dying that Daniel had seen fit to leave him.

“It’s OK to be scared you know,” observed Jack, finally displaying a degree of his usual psychic, Danny-deciphering ability. “What you were talking about doing was almost like dying and starting again.”

Danny nodded. “Now you tell me. I am sorry though, Jack,” despite himself, Danny added mischievously, “I think I touched something I shouldn’t have.” 

“Hey,” Jack patted him on the back, “I’m just as happy you blew that thing up, now there’s no need to worry about odd little accidents. Like maybe Kinsey swapping bodies with Hammond when we’re not looking or something.”

Danny shuddered. “I thought you were supposed to be making the nightmares better?”

“I’m a little out of practice, it’ll come to me.” Jack squeezed Danny again. “I’m so glad you didn’t leave. I like you just where you are.”

It was just what he needed to hear. As Danny snuggled up to Jack, he could feel the nightmare drifting away already.

**********

“How’s it going, Danny?” A familiar voice drew Danny from his on-base breakfast of fruit loops. He knew he’d really been spending way too much time with Jack to be eating fruit loops voluntarily, but somehow he didn’t mind.

He looked up, his eyes confirming that it was Daniel. “I’m fine.”

Daniel raised his eyebrows, making Danny wonder if he’d learned that trick from Jack or Teal’c. “Fine?”

“It’s good,” insisted Danny.

“So no hard feelings?” checked Daniel.

“You know what,” said Danny. “No. I like the way things worked out after all – it just took well…you, I suppose, to make me see it. Again.”

“Again?”

“Well, we had a couple of pep talks when you were ascended.”

“Oh, those – I remember.”

“You do?” Danny looked sceptical.

“Pretty much.” Daniel shrugged. “It’s not every day even an ascended being meets his little brother,” he added.

“That’s true,” conceded Danny, relaxing a little more. “Are you OK?”

“I’m fine.” 

They exchanged a look, Danny trying to duplicate Daniel’s eyebrow raising of a few moments before.

“Sorry,” said Daniel. “Habit.” He paused. “I am fine though, really.”

“Do you miss Jack?” asked Danny simply. 

“He’s still here,” observed Daniel.

“You know what I mean,” his younger counterpart grumbled.

“I’ll be all right,” said Daniel. “Plus I never want to live that nightmare,” he added nonchalantly turning to fetch his own breakfast.

Several fruit loops dropped unceremoniously from Danny’s mouth back into his bowl as he gaped after his older counterpart. Did he?

It was impossible to tell.


End file.
